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Italian-Dressed Snake: Alfa Romeo, Zagato transform a Viper into a TZ

April 2, 2012

Autoweek's Viper Week explores past articles and reviews ahead of the reveal of the new Viper at the New York auto show.

With the public debut of the 2013 SRT Viper scheduled for the New York auto show, we've scoured the Autoweek archives to bring you some classic Viper stories from our past. For exclusive Viper Week content, including the latest news as it happens, check out Autoweek's Viper Week.

By Dirk De Jager, originally published in Autoweek 07/11/2011.

Carmaker Alfa Romeo and coachbuilder Zagato have teamed up many times in the past 80 years to produce truly stunning vehicles. Their latest collaboration is another head turner.

In 2009, the companies decided to join forces again to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Alfa Romeo. The project resulted in two TZ3 cars. In the 1960s, TZ models (“Tubolare Zagato,” or chassis made by tubes) were highly sought after as racing cars for gentlemen. The TZ1 and the TZ2 are highly collectible today.

For the TZ3, Zagato chose to create a one-off Corsa version and a limited-production Stradale.

Only nine Stradales will be built, and we got the first car for an exclusive first drive. So far, seven of the nine have been sold, with three coming to the United States. Beyond a press release, this car has not been shown anywhere. The launch was planned for the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este but was postponed because another Zagato project was being shown there—an all-new Aston Martin (“Dreams Meet Reality at Lake Como,” AW, June 13).

The biggest shock is finding out what is used as a base car: a Dodge Viper ACR. The Viper was chosen because it was built as a rolling chassis, making it easy to fit a different body, just like back in the golden days of coachbuilders. The manufacturer created the chassis and the engine and delivered those to the coachbuilder of choice so that the body could be made for it according to the client's wishes.

On the Viper, all of the body panels can be removed without altering the chassis so that Zagato can place the all-carbon-fiber Italian suit on the American muscle car. The shape is an avant-garde interpretation of the TZ1 and the TZ2. The typical double-bubble roofline, the Kamm tail, the nose and the low ground clearance are all TZ qualities. Under the hood, the 8.4-liter V10 making 600 hp was not touched.

Taking the car out on the outskirts of Milan was a strange experience. The car had not been fully sorted out yet; work was delayed so that the Aston could be finished in time. Just two days after Villa d'Este, builders hadn't started checking over the car again. With just 90 miles on the odometer, this was, for Zagato, a test run.

The double bubble is not just for looks; it allows for extra headroom. As we drove during rush hour to photo locations, many people looked surprised to see this low predator emerging through traffic.

The biggest issue with the car is visibility. Design elements in the windows block the view to the side mirrors, and the rear-view mirror looks out on the bottom Kamm tail window. This gives you a view only if there's a car close behind.

After a 30-mile drive, enjoying the V10's rumble, we were reluctant to give back the car. But with a price in excess of $750,000, including the cost of the Viper, only a lucky few will ever get to own and enjoy one of these Zagato creations.